expectations exceeded (no spoilers)

Rating: 9/10 (13 June 2003)

so, all fears of 28 days later having suck potential have been completely annihilated. this was a peak experience at the movie theater. as music/film are my main passions, having the 2 of them blend together in such a manner literally gave me chills. first off, the composition of this movie was superb. there were so many creative camera angles in the first 10 minutes alone. i had feared that this would be a warmed over version of "the stand" (killer virus wipes out all but a handful, struggle between the good and bad side of human nature ensues) and while it was somewhat based on that premise it exceeds the stand in every aspect. the images of cillian murphy waking up to a deserted london were so eerie. it was so much more believable than the deserted "new york" (shot in pittsburgh) scenes from the stand. and this is where it went from just a movie to high art. the music for the scene was godspeed you black emporer's "east hastings". and it wasnt just a brief excerpt, this went on for a good 7 or 8 minutes. i couldnt believe it. ever since i started listening to them i always thought that someone should use their music in a film and danny boyle finally had the balls to do it. and do it well. the stark visuals of the aftermath of widespread chaos and the death that prevailed, while powerful on their own, were extremely intensified by the music. it's seriously worth it just for that scene alone. like he did with trainspotting, boyle made use of a cast of largely unknown actors. although i think the doctor right at the beginning was none other than spud murphy from trainspotting. at any rate my amateur movie criticism's are coming to a close. all i can say is see this movie at all costs. i can't wait to go see it again when i dont have to sit in the 3rd row and strain my neck for 2 hours.